13 Exorcisms (Spanish: 13 exorcismos) is a 2022 Spanish supernatural horror film directed by Jacobo Martínez in his feature debut, which stars María Romanillos and José Sacristán in a demonically possessed girl versus exorcist priest relationship, along with Ruth Díaz and Urko Olazabal.
| 13 Exorcisms | |
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 Theatrical release poster | |
| Spanish | 13 exorcismos |
| Directed by | Jacobo Martínez |
| Screenplay by |
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| Produced by |
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| Starring |
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Production companies |
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| Distributed by | Beta Fiction Spain |
Release date |
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| Country | Spain |
| Language | Spanish |
Plot
editFollowing a naive séance, and upon the strange behaviour displayed afterwards by teenager Laura Villegas, the latter's deeply Catholic family calls a Vatican-sanctioned exorcist to intervene in the purported case of demonic possession.[1][2]
Cast
edit- María Romanillos as Laura[3]
- José Sacristán as Padre Olmedo[3] ('Father Olmedo')
- Ruth Díaz as Carmen,[4] Laura's mother
- Urko Olazabal as Tomás,[4] Laura's father
- Pablo Revuelta as Jesús,[4] Laura's brother
- Silma López as Lola[4]
- Alicia Falcó as Mireia[4]
- Daniel Arias as Enrique[4]
- Uri Guitart as Arturo[4]
- Cristina Castaño as Asunción[4]
Production
editThe screenplay was written by Ramón Campos, Teresa Fernández-Valdés, Salvador S. Molina, Gema R. Neira, David Orea, and Carlos Ruano.[5] A Mr. Fields and Friends, Atresmedia Cine, Bambú Producciones and 13 E Movie AIE production, the film had the participation of Atresmedia, Movistar Plus+, AGADIC and Diputación de Ourense.[6] It was shot in Galicia, including locations such as Ourense, Ordes, and Santiago de Compostela.[5]
Release
editDistributed by Beta Fiction (thereby marking the company's debut as a distributor in the Spanish market), the film released theatrically in Spain on 4 November 2022.[5][7][1][8] StudioCanal handled international sales.[7]
Reception
editRaquel Hernández Luján of HobbyConsolas rated the film with 70 points ('good'), highlighting the cast's commitment, the most twisted scenes and the special effects as the best things about the film while citing the film's final coda as a negative element.[9]
Beatriz Martínez of La Nueva España rated the film 3 out of 5 stars, pointing out that despite the helmer managing to pull a beginning eliciting just the right doses of suggestion and creeps, the perspective, initially anchored to the adolescent psyche of the character portrayed by an "extraordinary" Romanillos, becomes blurred, and "the climax is rushed and confusing, throwing away the achievements of its disturbing beginning".[10]
Elsa Fernández-Santos of El País considered that the film "barely delves into its more realistic possibilities to offer [instead] a fiction that is slanted towards the fantastic, poorly constructed and that contributes very little to the genre", otherwise finding striking the direction of actors, as each one of them are seemingly in a different movie, with only Romanillos providing some truth to her character's portrayal.[11]
Begoña del Teso of El Correo rated the film 2 out of 5 stars, arguing that it is "badly structured, badly lit, badly created" and pointing out that its makers "could not decide if they wanted to (badly) imitate 'The Exorcist' or 'Carrie'".[12]
Accolades
edit| Year | Award | Category | Nominee(s) | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2023 |
37th Goya Awards | Best Special Effects | Mariano García Marty, Jordi Costa | Nominated | [13] |
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b Cazallas, Javier (22 October 2022). "Clip en exclusiva de 13 exorcismos, el nuevo thriller español de los guionistas de Malasaña 32". HobbyConsolas.
- ^ "La ciudad de Ourense se transforma en "protagonista" de la película '13 Exorcismos' de Jacobo Martínez". Europa Press. 16 May 2022.
- ^ a b Chico, Fran (2 November 2022). "'Los 13 exorcismos' de José Sacristán". Fotogramas.
- ^ a b c d e f g h "13 Exorcismos". Catálogo Cinespañol. Ministerio de Cultura. Retrieved 29 June 2024 – via ICAA.
- ^ a b c Rosado, Ricardo (27 September 2022). "Póster en exclusiva de '13 exorcismos': José Sacristán contra el diablo". Fotogramas.
- ^ "José Sacristán es un exorcista de 84 años en el inquietante tráiler de '13 Exorcismos', inspirada en casos reales". Espinof. 15 September 2022.
- ^ a b Hopewell, John (8 September 2022). "Studiocanal, Bambu Unveil '13 Exorcisms' (Exclusive)". Variety.
- ^ Chico, Fran (25 October 2023). "Las 38 mejores películas de terror de 2022 para pasar miedo". Fotogramas.
- ^ Hernández Luján, Raquel (2 November 2022). "Crítica de 13 exorcismos: los creadores de Malasaña 32 se inspiran en casos reales para su nueva película de terror". HobbyConsolas.
- ^ Martínez, Beatriz (3 November 2022). "'13 exorcismos': de Sacristán a exorcista". La Nueva España. Prensa Ibérica.
- ^ Fernández-Santos, Elsa (4 November 2022). "'13 exorcismos': ¿de verdad es necesario esto?". El País.
- ^ Teso, Begoña del (11 November 2022). "Crítica de: '13 exorcismos' (2022): No sé en qué película estoy". El Correo. Grupo Vocento.
- ^ "Ganadores de los Premios Goya 2023: lista completa de premiados en la gala". Cadena SER. 12 February 2023.